Getty Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott
Jerry Jones may have gotten a few laughs out of the room when he dropped his ‘Zeke who‘ line following the Dallas Cowboys preseason win over the Los Angeles Rams in Hawaii. However, the two-time rushing champ didn’t think the jab from the Cowboys owner was a laughing matter.
ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported on Monday that both Ezekiel Elliott and his agent Rocky Arceneaux felt the comment made by Jones was disrespectful to the running back as the sides are trying to negotiate a deal.
It drew a few laughs but neither @EzekielElliott nor agent Rocky Arceneaux found @Cowboys Jerry Jones’ quip “Zeke who?” as amusing. Arceneaux: “I didn’t think it was funny and neither did Zeke – we actually thought it was disrespectful.”
What prompted the quote from Jones was when a reporter asked if rookie Tony Pollard was the team’s best negotiator in the contract dispute with Elliott. Pollard was impressive with 42 yards and one touchdown rushing on five carries in the Cowboys’ 14-10 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
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Here’s what else Jones had to say about Pollard, which showed Elliott a little more respect.
Yes, Jerry Jones said “Zeke who”, when asked if Tony Pollard is his “best negotiator”.
But… this is the full “Zeke who?” sound bite from Jerry, complete with the necessary context of his follow-up to the joke, saying the #Cowboys need both Zeke Elliott and Tony Pollard.
“What’s amazing for him is to come in here and he hadn’t done that much,” Jones said. “He knows exactly what to do and he knows how to do it. If he goes out there and he plays to that level he’s going to be [at] for the next several weeks, he’s going to be right in the middle of it early. That will really complement what we’re doing with Zeke, not replace that, I mean that, not replace it. Nobody is getting cute here, certainly be a great compliment to have a great running game where I can picture those guys [having] success at the same time out there really giving the defense some fits.”
Ezekiel Elliott Contract Dispute Update
GettyEzekiel Elliott
The Cowboys are in the midst of a busy offseason, having multiple key players in need of new deals. Among the names are quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver Amari Cooper, corner Byron Jones and of course, Elliott. And team already gave defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence the richest deal in franchise history. All were Pro Bowlers a year ago.
The Cowboys have not been shy about feeding Zeke a massive amount, which is a large part why the Ohio State product wants a long-term deal. Last year, Elliott had a monster workload, with 304 rushes — 43 more than any other player — to go with 77 catches, collecting 2,001 yards from scrimmage.
Elliott is scheduled to make a base salary of $3.8 million this season and $9.09 million in 2020. He’d like to be paid like top tier backs Todd Gurley (four years, $57.5 million) and Le’Veon Bell (four years, $52.5 million)
It was reported this week by WFAA’s Mike Leslie reported Elliott has left Cabo and is back in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He said the sides remain “optimistic” of a deal getting done, however, time is running out to have the Zeke not miss any time, with Week 1 right around the corner.
Ezekiel Elliott Won’t Face Charges From Las Vegas Incident
While a contract might still seem a ways away, Elliott got some good news this week when it was reported that he won’t face charges stemming from an incident in Las Vegas where he knocked over a security guard.
Elliott was caught on tape shoving the security guard, later identified as Kyle Johnson, at a music festival in May. Elliott apologized and Johnson did not press charges at the time. However, in July, Johnson changed his mind and filed a criminal complaint with the Las Vegas Police Department.
Elliott has already been cleared by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and won’t be facing discipline from the league for the incident.
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